Alcohol consumption patterns and long-term anxiety: The influence of sex, age, and income

Alcohol consumption patterns have been associated with long-term anxiety, but evidence on how these associations vary across population subgroups remains limited. A study examined longitudinal associations between alcohol consumption frequency and quantity and subsequent anxiety, and tested whether these relationships were moderated by sex, age, and income level.
Participants were from a nationally representative sample of Australian adults (N = 21,405) from the Household, Income, and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) survey between 2006 and 2021. Linear mixed-effects models predicted anxiety based on alcohol consumption one-year prior up to eight times per participant. Moderation by sex (male, female), age-group (18-25, 26-37, 38-50, 51 + years), and income quartile were examined. Anxiety was measured using the Kessler-10 anxiety subscale and alcohol consumption was measured using self-reported alcohol consumption frequency (alcohol consumption occasions per week) and alcohol consumption quantity (standard drinks consumed on alcohol consumption occasions).
After adjusting for other factors, we found small effects of both drinking frequency and drinking amount on anxiety one year later. Drinking more often was linked to slightly lower anxiety (IRR = 0.98), while drinking larger amounts was linked to slightly higher anxiety (IRR = 1.02). Age influenced these relationships, but sex and income did not. For adults aged 51 and older, drinking more frequently was linked to slightly lower anxiety over time. However, this link was not seen in adults aged 18 to 50. In contrast, drinking larger amounts was linked to slightly higher anxiety over time for adults aged 51 and older and those aged 26 to 50. This relationship was not found in young adults aged 18 to 25.
While the impact of alcohol consumption on anxiety appears very small, divergent relationships of drinking frequency versus quantity on long-term anxiety seem to emerge across the lifespan. Drinking larger amounts per occasion appears associated with slight increases in anxiety from early adulthood, while drinking more frequently but in smaller amounts appears associated with slight decreases in anxiety in older adulthood.
Source: Simon D’Aquino, Benjamin Riordan, Megan Cook, Sarah Callinan, Alcohol consumption patterns and Long-Term Anxiety: The influence of Sex, Age, and income, Addictive Behaviors, Volume 175, 2026,
108594.